Overhead tube crane guide

Abstract

An x-ray system mounted on a surface includes a movable x-ray source and a mechanism for moving the x-ray source in at least two transverse directions. The two transverse directions are marked by visually distinguishable indicators. A control panel controls movement of the x-ray source along the transverse directions and includes corresponding markings on control buttons matching the visually distinguishable indicators.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. An x-ray system mounted on a surface and having a movable x-ray source, the system comprising:
 a first rail assembly attached to the surface; 
 a second rail assembly attached to the surface, the first and second rail assemblies each extending along one of two linear transverse directions; 
 a carriage attached to the rail assemblies and to the x-ray source for moving the x-ray source along the two linear transverse directions; 
 a first elongated colored region disposed proximate to the first rail assembly; 
 a second elongated colored region disposed proximate to the second rail assembly and having a different color than the first elongated colored region; and 
 a control panel configured to control movement of the carriage along the two linear transverse directions, the control panel comprising: 
 a first manually controllable switch having a same color as the first elongated colored region, the first manually controllable switch configured to move the carriage in a direction parallel to the first rail assembly; and 
 a second manually controllable switch having a same color as the second elongated colored region, the second manually controllable switch configured to move the carriage in a direction parallel to the second rail assembly. 
 
     
     
       2. The system of  claim 1 , wherein the two linear transverse directions are coplanar. 
     
     
       3. The system of  claim 2 , wherein the two linear transverse directions are orthogonal. 
     
     
       4. The system of  claim 3 , wherein the two linear transverse directions are coplanar in a plane parallel to a plane of the surface. 
     
     
       5. The system of  claim 1 , wherein the first and second elongated colored regions and the first and second manually controllable switches' colors are selected to be visually distinguishable by a human operator. 
     
     
       6. The system of  claim 1 , wherein the first and second elongated colored regions and the first and second manually controllable switches further comprise visually distinguishable alphanumeric characters, geometric shapes or symbols, or a combination thereof. 
     
     
       7. The system of  claim 1 , wherein the first and second manually controllable switches comprise buttons or areas on a touch screen. 
     
     
       8. The system of  claim 7 , wherein the first elongated colored region comprises a first plurality of electronic colored light sources, and the second elongated colored region comprises a second plurality of electronic colored light sources having a different color than the first plurality of electronic colored light sources, and wherein the first and second manually controllable switches are configured to activate the first and second plurality of electronic colored light sources, respectively. 
     
     
       9. The system of  claim 1 , wherein the control panel is disposed on a hand held remote controller. 
     
     
       10. A method of controlling movement of an x-ray source in an x-ray system mounted on a surface, the method comprising:
 demarcating each of a plurality of movement directions including applying an elongated colored strip on the surface for each of the plurality of movement directions, each of the colored strips having a different visually distinguishable color, and each of the colored strips disposed parallel to a corresponding movement direction; 
 coloring each of a plurality of control buttons on a controller a same color as one of the elongated color strips; 
 activating a selected one of the control buttons on the controller; and 
 in response to the step of activating, moving the x-ray source in a direction parallel to an elongated strip having a same color as the selected one of the control buttons. 
 
     
     
       11. An x-ray system mounted on a surface and having a movable x-ray source, the system comprising:
 a mechanism for moving the x-ray source in at least two transverse directions, wherein the at least two transverse directions each include two end points; 
 a plurality of indicators each having a different visually distinguishable color and each positioned proximate to one of the end points; and 
 a controller configured to control the mechanism for moving movement of the x-ray source, the controller comprising a plurality of manually controlled switches for causing the mechanism to move the x-ray source, the plurality of manually controlled switches each having a same color as one of the plurality of indicators, wherein each of the plurality of manually controlled switches is configured to be activated to cause the mechanism to move the x-ray source toward an indicator having the same color as the activated switch. 
 
     
     
       12. The system of  claim 11 , wherein the at least two transverse directions are coplanar. 
     
     
       13. The system of  claim 12 , wherein the at least two transverse directions are orthogonal. 
     
     
       14. The system of  claim 13 , wherein the at least two transverse directions are coplanar in a plane parallel to a plane of the surface. 
     
     
       15. The system of  claim 11 , wherein the plurality of indicators comprise visually distinguishable alphanumeric characters, geometric shapes or symbols, or a combination thereof. 
     
     
       16. The system of  claim 15 , wherein the controller comprises a hand held remote controller. 
     
     
       17. The system of  claim 11 , wherein the plurality of manually controlled switches comprise of a plurality of buttons or a plurality of areas on a touch screen. 
     
     
       18. The system of  claim 17 , wherein the plurality of indicators comprise a plurality of electronic light sources, and wherein the plurality of buttons are configured to each activate a corresponding one of the electronic light sources.